London open: Positive start after strong US jobs

8th Jul 2013 08:04

London's leading shares started the week on strong footing after Friday's better than expected US nonfarm payrolls number and as focus turns to European Central Bank (ECB) President Mario Draghi's speech to European Parliament.Friday's widely watched report from the Labor Department showed US employers added 195,000 jobs in June while the unemployment rate remained unchanged at 7.6%. The report increased expectations that the Federal Reserve may soon start winding down its stimulus efforts.Sentiment was also boosted by hopes that Britain's economy could be looking at a period of strong "catch up growth".Capital, founded by former UK Treasury adviser Roger Bootle, said the UK economy could expand at a 4.0% annual rate in the second half of the decade once it gets past current weakness.The encouraging outlook comes in the wake of dovish comments by the Bank of England and European Central Bank (ECB). On Monday the spotlight will be on Draghi's speech to European Parliament and any clues on how long the ECB exects to keep interest rates at record lows. Focus is also expected to turn to Greece and a possible deal with its lenders reviewing its bailout. Economic data from Germany will also be published, including Balance of Trade, Current Account, Industrial Production and Retail Price Index. Stocks on the move on Monday included actuator manufacturer and flow control company Rotork which has bought valve company Flowco. Peter France, Chief Executive of Rotork, said the transaction would "further enhance" the group's service offering.Elsewhere FTSE 250 pharmaceutical group Hikma Pharmaceuticals said it expects revenue to grow by 17 per cent in 2013 compared to its previous guidance of 13 per cent. In a trading update, the company said it has been performing well across all its businesses.Bovis Hovis said reservations in the first half were ahead of its expectations amid signs of a strong improvement in the housing market. The house builder said it had achieved 1,389 private reservations in the period, marking a 40% increase on the first six months of 2012, and its average selling price on completion had risen 15% to £188,500 driven by a better mix of homes.FTSE 100 - RisersLloyds Banking Group (LLOY) 66.24p +2.49%ARM Holdings (ARM) 859.50p +2.20%Tullow Oil (TLW) 1,070.00p +2.10%ITV (ITV) 152.20p +1.81%Antofagasta (ANTO) 797.50p +1.66%Aviva (AV.) 354.90p +1.60%Randgold Resources Ltd. (RRS) 4,112.00p +1.53%Vedanta Resources (VED) 1,007.00p +1.51%IMI (IMI) 1,327.00p +1.45%Barclays (BARC) 295.65p +1.42%FTSE 100 - FallersAdmiral Group (ADM) 1,337.00p -0.22%Hammerson (HMSO) 513.00p -0.10%Aberdeen Asset Management (ADN) 387.30p 0.00%SSE (SSE) 1,581.00p +0.13%Eurasian Natural Resources Corp. (ENRC) 211.10p +0.14%Rexam (REX) 483.80p +0.14%Schroders (SDR) 2,265.00p +0.22%Fresnillo (FRES) 888.50p +0.23%National Grid (NG.) 751.00p +0.27%HSBC Holdings (HSBA) 714.40p +0.27%FTSE 250 - RisersBovis Homes Group (BVS) 812.50p +4.84%Hikma Pharmaceuticals (HIK) 1,032.00p +3.82%Centamin (DI) (CEY) 36.83p +3.25%Elementis (ELM) 227.20p +2.62%Restaurant Group (RTN) 530.00p +2.51%Ophir Energy (OPHR) 389.10p +2.39%Henderson Group (HGG) 158.10p +2.20%Cairn Energy (CNE) 266.70p +2.07%Tullett Prebon (TLPR) 340.70p +1.91%Perform Group (PER) 488.00p +1.88%FTSE 250 - FallersBarr (A.G.) (BAG) 514.50p -3.92%Hochschild Mining (HOC) 154.40p -3.74%Petra Diamonds Ltd.(DI) (PDL) 113.00p -2.75%Kier Group (KIE) 1,238.00p -2.37%Halma (HLMA) 513.00p -2.19%Carpetright (CPR) 617.00p -2.06%Computacenter (CCC) 480.10p -1.92%COLT Group SA (COLT) 102.60p -1.72%JPMorgan Indian Inv Trust (JII) 358.10p -1.67%Workspace Group (WKP) 432.70p -1.66%